Intellectual Property & Licensing for Fungal Innovations
Protect and monetise fungal strains, processes, products and brands through patents, trade secrets, trademarks and licensing deals.
Programme identification
- 1.1Programme name
- Intellectual Property & Licensing for Fungal Innovations
- 1.2Type of qualification
- Course
- 1.3Provider / endorsing institution
- Fungaris – International Institute of Mycology, School of Mushroom Business & Entrepreneurship. A Fungaris programme of its own, not endorsed by a university.
- 1.4Mode of study
- Online, with live sessions in a small group, recordings and a virtual campus.
- 1.5Duration (hours / ECTS credits)
- 2–3 months · 6 modules. Teaching hours are confirmed in the guide for each intake. ECTS credits: not applicable (Fungaris own programme).
- 1.6Language
- English
- 1.7Start and end dates / intake
- Intakes open throughout the year. Admissions confirms the start and end dates of the next intake. How intakes work →
Overview
2.1Programme description
This course explains how to protect and earn value from fungal strains, processes, products and brands. You will cover intellectual property basics for biotech and food innovators, patenting fungal processes and products, strains, biological deposits and plant variety rights, trade secrets, trademarks and know-how, licensing, royalties and technology transfer, and freedom to operate together with access and benefit-sharing obligations.
Fungal innovation often rests on things that are hard to protect, such as a selected strain, a cultivation recipe or a fermentation method. Choosing what to patent, what to keep secret and what to license can decide whether a start-up attracts investment or a research result reaches the market. Fungal genetic resources may also fall under the Nagoya Protocol and national access rules. The course suits founders, researchers and technology transfer staff. It builds strategic understanding and the right questions for patent attorneys, rather than replacing them. In the final project you prepare an IP strategy for a fungal innovation, mapping assets, choosing protection routes, outlining a licensing model and flagging freedom-to-operate and benefit-sharing issues.
2.2Why it matters / what need it meets
It meets a practical need: applied, up-to-date knowledge in business, useful in areas such as Fungal biotechnology, Food and alternative protein innovation, Research and technology transfer, Biomaterials.
Mycology is moving fast and good practical training is still scarce. This programme gives you a structured path, taught live by people who work in the field, so you can apply what you learn with judgement and safety.
Objectives and competences
3.1General objective
To finish the programme able to apply its content professionally and with judgement. In short:
Protect and monetise fungal strains, processes, products and brands through patents, trade secrets, trademarks and licensing deals.
3.2Specific objectives
- Build the foundations: IP basics for biotech and food innovators; Patenting fungal processes and products.
- Put them into practice: Strains, biological deposits and plant variety rights; Trade secrets, trademarks and know-how.
- Apply everything to a real case: Licensing, royalties and technology transfer; Freedom to operate and access and benefit-sharing.
- Complete a final project reviewed by your professor.
3.3Competences you will gain
- Identify the intellectual property assets in a fungal innovation.
- Decide between patents, trade secrets and other protection routes.
- Explain how biological material deposits support patent applications.
- Outline a licensing deal with royalties and key terms.
- Flag freedom-to-operate and access and benefit-sharing risks.
Student profile
4.1Who it is for (entry profile)
Founders, researchers and tech transfer staff.
4.2Entry requirements
No legal background is required. A basic understanding of research or product development in fungi or biotech is helpful.
4.3Career paths (exit profile)
- Founder managing IP in a fungal start-up
- Technology transfer officer at a university or institute
- IP and licensing coordinator in a biotech company
- Research manager commercialising fungal discoveries
- Business development lead for strain or process licensing
Outcomes depend on your experience and on your local market.
Study plan
5.1Overall structure (modules and workload)
| Module | Title | Phase | Topics |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | IP basics for biotech and food innovators | Foundations | 3 |
| 02 | Patenting fungal processes and products | Foundations | 3 |
| 03 | Strains, biological deposits and plant variety rights | Practice | 3 |
| 04 | Trade secrets, trademarks and know-how | Practice | 3 |
| 05 | Licensing, royalties and technology transfer | Application & project | 3 |
| 06 | Freedom to operate and access and benefit-sharing | Application & project | 3 |
6 modules · 2–3 months. Each module combines live sessions, campus study and exercises. The hours per module are set out in the guide for each intake.
5.2Content by module
Hover or tap a module to follow the path from the first session to the final project. Open a module to see the topics it covers.
- Types of intellectual property
- Ownership and inventorship
- IP in research collaborations
- What can be patented
- Novelty and inventive step
- Patent process and costs
- Protecting fungal strains
- Budapest Treaty deposits
- Plant variety rights and fungi
- When to keep a trade secret
- Registering trademarks
- Protecting know-how in teams
- Licensing models
- Royalties and fees
- University technology transfer
- Freedom-to-operate searches
- Nagoya Protocol basics
- Benefit-sharing agreements
5.3Company placement
This programme does not include a company placement. Practice is built into every module through exercises, case studies and the final project.
5.4Final project
An IP strategy for a fungal innovation covering assets, protection routes, licensing model and key risks.
Methodology
6.1How it is taught
- Live online sessions, usually weekly, with a working professional and a small group.
- Recordings of every session, so you can catch up if work or time zones get in the way.
- Exercises and real case studies in every module.
- Tutoring: your professor answers questions and gives feedback on your exercises and project.
6.2Platform and resources
A Moodle virtual campus with session recordings, readings, exercises and forums for each module. You need a computer, an up-to-date browser and a stable connection; a webcam and microphone are recommended.
Technical requirements →6.3Estimated weekly workload
About 4 to 6 hours a week: the live session plus study and exercises on the campus. Admissions confirms the schedule of each intake.
Assessment
7.1Assessment system and weighting
Progress is assessed through participation in live sessions and module exercises such as IP audits and licensing scenarios. The final IP strategy is reviewed by the professor.
7.2Requirements to pass
- Complete every module, by attending the live sessions or watching the recordings.
- Hand in the module exercises.
- Have your final project approved by your professor.
Teaching team
8.1Academic direction
The Business at Fungaris coordinates the content and quality of this programme. The academic director of each intake is named in the intake guide.
8.2Faculty
Taught by professionals who work in the field. The professor of each intake is confirmed before the start.
Meet our faculty →Certificate
9.1Certificate awarded
Course Certificate
On completing the programme and its project, Fungaris issues a Course Certificate. Accreditations are assessed according to the training completed and the local regulations of each country.
9.2Issuing body / recognition
Issued by Fungaris (operated by Nexora Generation, S.L.) as a digital certificate. It is a Fungaris certificate of its own: it is not an official university degree and does not award ECTS credits.
About our certificates →Admission and enrolment
10.1Admission process (steps)
- Send your request through the form or write to admissions.
- Admissions reviews your profile and confirms the start date, the session schedule and the fee.
- You secure your place with full payment or a 40% reservation.
- You receive your campus access and welcome guide before the first session.
10.2Documents required
- A valid identity document.
- Contact and billing details (personal or company).
10.3Deadlines
Places are limited for each group. Admissions gives you the enrolment deadline for the next intake.
10.4Fee and payment options
Fee: ask admissions; it is quoted in US dollars (USD).
- Full payment before the start, with a 20% reduction.
- 40% reservation and the rest in monthly instalments during the programme.
10.5Grants, discounts and funding
Your employer can pay for the programme and receive the invoice in the company name. Whether a public or employer training budget can cover the fee depends on your country, so check with them. Admissions tells you about any discount available for your intake.
10.6Cancellation policy
The conditions for cancelling, withdrawing or moving to a later intake are explained in our cancellation policy and in your enrolment confirmation. Nothing there limits your rights under the consumer law that applies to you.
Cancellation and refunds →Additional information
11.1Frequently asked questions
Do I need experience to study Intellectual Property & Licensing for Fungal Innovations?
No legal background is required. A basic understanding of research or product development in fungi or biotech is helpful.
How is Intellectual Property & Licensing for Fungal Innovations taught?
Live online, in 6 modules with a working professional, a small group and a final project.
How am I assessed?
Progress is assessed through participation in live sessions and module exercises such as IP audits and licensing scenarios. The final IP strategy is reviewed by the professor.
What is the final project?
An IP strategy for a fungal innovation covering assets, protection routes, licensing model and key risks.
What certificate do I get?
On completing the programme and its project, Fungaris issues a Course Certificate. Accreditations are assessed according to the training completed and the local regulations of each country.
What can I study after Intellectual Property & Licensing for Fungal Innovations?
The natural next step is Diploma in Mushroom Business Management.
11.2Alumni testimonials
We only publish verified testimonials from real students. This programme does not have any published yet; they will appear here once its first intakes finish.
11.3Admissions contact
Write to info@fungaris.institute or use the contact form. Admissions answers in your language.
Read before you start.
Keep branching.
Join the next intake.
Pay in full with a 20% reduction, or reserve your place with 40% and pay the rest in monthly instalments. All prices are stated in US dollars (USD).